Pomatiidae
The family Pomatiidae is a taxonomic family of small operculate land snails, terrestrial gastropod mollusks that can be found over the warmer parts of the Old World. In the older literature, this family is designated as Pomatiasidae.
This family is a lineage closely related to the Littorinidae (periwinkles) common in coastal habitat. They have adapted to terrestrial life and are thus sometimes called "land winkles".[1]
They are defined by a chalky operculum at the rear end of the body, the shape of their thick shell and their mouth and a characteristic spiral sculpture. The sexes are separate and can sometimes be recognised because the female shell is slightly larger than the male shell.
According to the Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005), the family Pomatiidae consisted of two subfamilies:[2]
